A Gathering

Dragon Knight Warrior Academy, the back hills.

Thud—thud—

Footsteps rang out as a black-robed figure with a Heavy Ruler strapped to his back raced through the woods, heading toward the central lake at breakneck speed.

As the figure approached, an old man emerged from the humble wooden cabin beside the lake.

"Yao Lao!" the figure called from afar. It was Xiao Yan.

The old man Xiao Yan called "Yao Lao" looked him up and down from a distance, surprise flickering in his eyes. "You broke through to level seven so quickly. Your talent is even more outrageous than I expected."

"I was lucky," Xiao Yan said, rubbing his nose.

"Without the advanced Dou Qi manual you taught me, the Flame Mantra, I wouldn't have been able to break through to level seven so soon," Xiao Yan said sincerely.

He meant every word.

Only after coming to the Coiling Dragon World could he truly understand how cruel it was. Its social classes were almost completely fixed, and talent alone wasn't enough for an ordinary genius to get ahead.

Resources mattered just as much, including Dou Qi manuals and advanced magic incantations.

Talent alone wasn't enough to become a powerhouse in this world. Even someone with the talent to become a god would be wasting it if he spent his whole life never learning what Dou Qi was. (Divine Beasts were the exception.)

Three years ago, when Xiao Yan had come to Starfire City to study, he had displayed extraordinary talent. But because his origins were unknown, most of the Starfire Kingdom's warrior academies had been afraid to accept him. The few that were willing were private academies funded by nobles. Not only were their resources scarce, but students had to sign contracts of indenture and serve the nobles behind the academies after graduation.

In the end, when Xiao Yan had been at his wits' end, Yao Lao had stepped in and helped him enroll at the Dragon Knight Warrior Academy.

Later, as Xiao Yan's strength grew, Yao Lao's interest in him had gradually increased. After Xiao Yan broke through to become a level-six warrior, Yao Lao had even given him a Dou Qi manual.

"Don't thank me, kid. The Flame Mantra was just the icing on the cake. Your talent was what really let you break through so quickly," Yao Lao said coldly.

"Besides, when I gave you the Flame Mantra, I made it clear that this was a deal!"

"I gave you a chance and helped you grow stronger. In return, you'll kill someone for me!" Yao Lao gritted his teeth, his voice brimming with hatred.

"Who?" Xiao Yan asked at once, without a trace of hesitation or fear.

"You're not strong enough yet. I'll tell you when the time comes." Yao Lao had been watching Xiao Yan's reaction closely. A flicker of satisfaction appeared in his eyes, and his cold expression softened slightly.

After that, Yao Lao began teaching Xiao Yan the Heavy as Light technique.

...By evening, after a full day of training with Yao Lao in the back hills, Xiao Yan dragged himself home, exhausted. He washed up and soon fell fast asleep.

Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, Lynn opened his eyes in the meditation room of Room 9527 at the Imperial Capital Magic Academy, where he had lain all day.

"Yao Lao mastered the Heavy as Light technique and is a level-nine warrior. His enemy can't be weak either—at least a level-nine warrior at the peak, or perhaps... a Saint Domain powerhouse!"

"If it's the latter, that could be trouble." Lynn thought about it, his expression grave.

"Third Brother, done with your training?" Leiluo entered the meditation room and noticed Lynn lost in thought.

Lynn pushed his thoughts aside and smiled. "I wasn't feeling right today, so I decided to finish early."

"If you ask me, you should've rested ages ago. You spend every day going between the cafeteria, classroom, and meditation room. With that level of dedication, even the Church of Light would call you an Ascetic." Gates's voice came from outside the meditation room.

Thud—thud—Gates came scampering into the room.

"Hey, Leiluo, Nina's hosting a gathering tonight. What do you say?" Gates waggled his eyebrows. "If you want to train, I'll go by myself."

"Nina?" A sweet, innocent face flashed through Leiluo's mind. This is so wrong!

"You can train anytime, but gatherings don't come around often. Let's go." Leiluo agreed without hesitation, and the two of them started to leave.

"Lynn, want to come with us?" Gates asked casually as they headed out.

Neither Gates nor Leiluo expected Lynn to say yes. They had only asked out of habit.

"I'll pass... Wait, I'll go wash up and change." Lynn had instinctively started to turn them down, but then something occurred to him. He changed course mid-sentence and went to freshen up.

"Huh?" The two of them stared at each other, and silence fell.

After a long while, Leiluo spoke in a weak voice. "Am I hearing things? I thought I heard Third Brother say he was going to a gathering."

"I think I heard it too."

Soon, freshly washed and changed, Lynn disappeared into the night with Leiluo and Gates, his two "old hands" as guides.

Not long after the three left, Taylor finally returned to the dorm after Old John had let him go.

"Bang!"

"Third Brother, I heard on the way back that Senior Nina's hosting a gathering. Leiluo and Gates left too, didn't they? I'm not like those two ingrates. I was thinking of you still training, so I came back especially to keep you company."

"Let's train together and work ourselves to death so we can crush Big Brother and Second Brother!"

"Hehe... Hey, where's Third Brother? Why isn't he in the meditation room?"

"I get it. He must be training in the back hills... Hehe, clever Taylor saw through everything!"

Lynn had been in the Coiling Dragon World for twelve years, but tonight was his first time attending a gathering of nobles.

It reminded him of a song.

"Swirling wine glasses, lips like they're stained with blood, a beauty unlike any other..."

To the soft music, men and women of striking bearing swayed to the rhythm on the dance floor. Leiluo and Gates were among them, circling a blonde girl like worker bees eager to mate, their hormones on full display.

"Glug... glug..." Lynn frowned and set down his wineglass. "As expected, I still can't get used to this."

"The girl surrounded by Leiluo and Gates must be Nina, the one they're always talking about."

As Lynn watched the dancers, a young man in a purple robe noticed him.

"I didn't expect you to show up too." The young man sat down beside Lynn as if they were old friends.

Hearing a voice both familiar and unfamiliar, Lynn reflexively looked toward the speaker.

It was Kasa.

"You!"

"Looks like this time the great genius Lynn remembers who I am." Noticing Lynn's reaction, Kasa teased him like an old friend. He seemed much more mature than he had six months ago.

"What do you want?" Lynn replied casually, his gaze still fixed on the men and women dancing.